


Safety Hazards and Lethal Smiles

by SelfTitledWorldWonder



Category: Stranger Things (TV 2016)
Genre: Billy Hargrove Being an Asshole, Billy Hargrove Tries to Be a Better Person, F/M, I actually hate billy canon, and turned him from abusive and racist to simply damaged, but I have succumbed to the temptation of the bad boy, when in reality he is an asshole
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-01-01
Updated: 2018-01-16
Packaged: 2019-02-26 11:16:02
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 1,240
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13234524
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SelfTitledWorldWonder/pseuds/SelfTitledWorldWonder
Summary: Billy Hargrove is an asshole of epic proportions.  You know that.  Everyone knows that.  So why does your heart stutter every time he grins at you?  Man, are you in trouble.Short, mostly fluffy bc Billy is not racist or abusive here.





	1. Part 1

It’d started a couple of months ago, when you’d been reassigned a new locker mid-school year (you still didn’t know why).  On your way to find said new locker you’d accidentally walked into Billy Hargrove; landing on your ass, of course, while he managed to remain standing.

_Typical._

You’d expected him to yell, get angry, maybe even call you a name or two.  After all, you’d heard of his reputation, seen him in the halls picking on other kids with his friends Tommy and Carol.  It was ridiculous; he’d only been here 3 weeks and he was already crowning himself King of the school.

You’d told him once, after you’d become friends, that that was a ridiculous goal in life and the dumbest title you’d ever heard.  When he threw his head back laughing, you couldn’t help but admire him - and feel a little proud of yourself for eliciting such a beautiful smile.

So, sat on the ground right next to your fallen dignity, you’d already prepared yourself for the worst when…  It didn’t come.  He didn’t shout – didn’t even get angry – just sort of… looked at you for a minute, the hardened look in his eyes softening ever so slightly.

To say you were shocked when he offered you his hand to help you get up would be the understatement of all understatements.

It took you a few seconds before you could even comprehend what was going on, but as soon as you did you reached up, allowing him to pull you to your feet.

“You should watch where you’re going, coming ’round corners that fast – gonna get yourself hurt.”

His voice was softer than you’d ever heard it – granted, you’d never had an actual conversation with the boy before, so it wasn’t like you had much for comparison, but still.

“Uh, yeah.  Thanks; I’ll bear that in mind next time I’m walking at the lightning-speed of two and a half miles an hour.”  You hadn’t meant for the dry comment to slip out, but it had done so anyway.

_Oops._

Billy’s eyebrows raise in shock, but again, instead of getting angry, he just chuckles.

“Alright, speed-demon, I give.  It was me rushing.  But I still think you’re a safety hazard.”  He leans against the wall, one arm propped up as he grins down at you, looking every inch the Cheshire cat.  It heats your cheeks and puts you on edge at the same time.  “Don’t go crashing into any other guys ’round that next corner, alright?  ’Make a guy feel like he’s not special.”

You’re fairly certain he’s flirting with you.  Billy Hargrove.  Flirting (not a shocker).  Flirting with you (shocker).

So, of course, you panic, stumble over an excuse, and haul ass out of there.  He was dangerous.  And that smile?  Lethal.

Glancing back, you see that he’s only just started walking again, and can’t help but bite your lip as you glance down a little.

_His ass isn’t so bad either._


	2. Part 2

After your supremely embarrassing encounter with Billy Hargrove – during which you manage to not only fall on your ass, but also run off before the few words exchanged could even be considered a conversation – you simply hoped that you’d be able to avoid him for the rest of your high school career.

The rest of your life, if you could get away with it.

Were you overreacting?  Most likely, but you’d never dealt with embarrassment very well – especially when it was witnessed by someone as attractive Billy fuckin’ Hargrove – so in your mind it was justified.

The world, apparently, felt differently.

Not only could you not avoid Billy for the rest of your life; you couldn’t even avoid him for a day.  Apparently, your new locker was placed exactly seven doors down from his.  And it seemed he held absolutely no reservations about initiating contact with you.

“Hey, Safety Hazard!”

Hiding your head behind your open locker door, you curse quietly and take a deep breath, hoping that if you prepare yourself for the upcoming conversation you might be less likely to make a fool out of yourself.

Once again you find yourself looking up at Billy as he smirks down at you, one arm leant casually against the closed locker on your right.  He raises one eyebrow, clearly waiting for you to speak.

“Y’know,” you turn back to your locker, swapping the textbook in your hand for the notepad sitting horizontally on the small shelf.  “I don’t really think it’s fair of you to stick me with a nickname like that based on one unfortunate incident.”

His smirk only grows as you turn to look at him, absentmindedly shoving the notebook into your bag.  You’re pleased to note that your voice didn’t waver once, making you seem much more confident than you felt on the inside.  Always a plus.

“Well, I’m sorry, _sweetcheeks_.  I can mix it up a bit if you want?”

Laughing softly, you roll your eyes and do your best to throw him a coy but flirty smile.

Why not?  He’s hot, and it probably wouldn’t lead anywhere ’cause lord knows the boy’s a bit of an asshole, but what harm could a little flirting cause?

“Surprise me.”

* * *

 

Billy takes this as a challenge, and it doesn’t take long for you to regret those words.

He starts greeting you every day before classes with a new nickname.  Some were inspired by the crash that initiated your friendship – “How you doing, my little hurricane?” “Hey!  I thought we were done with the disaster-based nicknames!” – while others were simple pet names – “Hey, buttercup, did you miss me?” “I saw you _yesterday_ , Billy.” – but _all_ of them made you roll your eyes so hard you were a little scared that one day they’d fall backwards into your skull.

Despite this, for some reason, you loved it.  There was a constant back-and-forth between you, and there was a definite distinction between the way he flirted with you and the way he flirted with all the other girls.  Which you noticed, after about a fortnight, he’d started to do less and less.

You tried not to admit it to yourself, because _good lord_ did this crack open a new can of worms that should probably remain firmly closed, but secretly it pleased you that he wasn’t flirting with anyone else.

Eventually, you figure that he must be running low on material because he starts reusing nicknames.  When he calls you ‘his little hurricane’ for the third time you call him on his lack of imagination.

“You running out of nicknames for me, hot stuff?”

Stifling a laugh at the shock on his face – you’d never joined in on the whole nicknames thing before – you kick your car door closed and set off for the entrance to the school.  Billy jogs to catch up with you once he pulls himself together, a huge grin growing on his lips.

“’Hot stuff’, huh?”  His tone and his smirk seem conceited, but it’s clear from the light in his eyes that he’s more pleased about you joining his game than paying him a compliment.

“Well, it’s a lot nicer than the stuff I call you in my head.”

Grinning, you only just manage to dodge his hip-check as you run forward and step into the school, completely missing both the look of adoration that flashes across Billy’s face as well as what he mumbles under his breath.

“I’m _so fucked_.” 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I do take requests for headcanons over on my tumblr (daryldamnson), but it's fine if anyone wants to send them in here too.
> 
> Billy disclaimer: Okay, so I have to have it noted that I hate Billy Hargrove with a passion - he’s a racist abusive asshole, let’s be honest. So for this story, I’m tweaking him a little. He’ll still be An Asshole™, but he’ll be a redeemable one (read: not racist or abusive).
> 
> I have no idea when Part 3 will be up, but if you’d like to see it then let me know!

**Author's Note:**

> I do take requests, for both headcanons and imagines/oneshots over on my tumblr (daryldamnson), but it's fine if anyone wants to send them in here too.
> 
> Billy Hargrove disclaimer:  Okay, so I have to have it noted that I hate Billy Hargrove with a passion - he’s a racist abusive asshole, let’s be honest.  However… I actually do really like reading fics about Billy, it’s like my guilty pleasure.  I’m so ashamed bc I really do dislike his character canon.  But when it comes to fanfics you can write your characters as OOC as you want, which means I’m going to change him just a little.  He’ll still be An Asshole™, but he’ll be a redeemable one (read: not racist or abusive).


End file.
